finding your way around the the internet

[murdock]

i need to learn more about the internet...

what things mean and how to do stuff...

i want to make my bussiness more visible on the internet...

i wanted to load pictures on a forum but they didnt have a gallery so i had to register with photobucket load the pics then copy and paste them in the thread.

while doing this it got me thinking about the whole social network...

things like blogs...when do you start a blog and why a blog...

what are rs feeds...

facebook...is it worth registering are there any benefits...

twitter...why would i want to register with twitter...

is there a way of linking one thread to various threads so you dont have to type out the same info an different websites...

there are so many questions....

[murdock]

a good example is all the links at he bottom of the page...digg...facebook...etc etc

which ones do you sign up with and why?

is it much like going to the pub but on the internet...instead of actually going to the pub you sit in the comfort of your office or lounge and type instead of talking...find which crowd you enjoy and get active...if you dont like the content you just move to another...and try it out...am i on the righ track...if not please help me and point me in the right direction...

am i the only person so left behind or are there other out there who are also just as internet hadicapped?

i dont even have a cellphone which connects to the internet...

my staff seem to be more busy on their phones all day than working...you hear the cell going beep beep all day long...then they on the phone and typing and beep again...it is becoming a big problem...the other day i am explaing the work required to a person and his phone goes so while i am showing him the work he has got the scribe out replying...never mind rude but where do you draw the line...surely the employer has a right to 8 hours of productive time...

[murdock]

things like becoming friends on the forums...why do people do that i thought sharing info on the site was being friends...

there are so many things...i know how to access the froums and thats about it....all the other stuf fon the forums i have no idea what they are for and how they work.

i have a notification at the top of the page which has beent there for months...to join an interest group why would i do that...isnt this froum and interest group?

excuse me for being such an idiot but maybe there are other people like myself who would also like to know how things work.

[robinsonwang]

photobucket,dose this one work better that google picasa?

[IanF]

Murdock,
Set up a free website with someone like Yola. Then if that works setup one with someone like Rudi at softdux it is very reasonable. You have a lot of free website building tools if you use Softdux just have to play around. Try a few.
Just plan the website properly, go to one you like and use that as an example.
Anyway be sure to post your link here.

[garthu]

100% with Ian. Theres nothing quite like just doing it to get it. Basically the way i did. Sign up to a few things like Dereks free seo course.. the support forums for all the joomla, web build, wordpress sites etc are huge. A I reckon a wordpress site would be a good one to get going as it is well supported, easy and you feed, link to all sorts etc.

I think also that the net has become such a huge monster that there are no longer general gurus that know it ALL, but rather specialize now as its become so hi-tech and vast!

[Chatmaster]

The web is filled with many tutorials regarding these issues so I am not going to write any tutorials but rather keep it simple and opinionated

i want to make my bussiness more visible on the internet...

Setup a business website, that is the first step, have a space on the web where your business can be represented. Register a domain relative to your target market, if you are looking for International exposure go for .com for SA go for .co.za.

things like blogs...when do you start a blog and why a blog...

You start a blog when you would like to make daily posts about issues that interest you. These can be in line with your business or even topics remotely related. The key here is however to make posts on a daily basis. Normally it is good to setup Google alerts for keywords related to your industry and then monitoring the latest news and info regarding it and posting it on your blog. When you install a blog also make use of the "Press this" feature with WordPress, do not make use of any other blogging software.

what are rs feeds...

It is just another distribution channel for your website and or blog. It can increase your exposure and imo is a requirement end of story.

facebook...is it worth registering are there any benefits...

I will pull the lion's tale here... 3 approaches

1. it is only worthwhile if you have some following on your existing website or blog
2. it is only worthwhile if you have some viral marketing strategy hooked up with it, this can be a cause, some issues that are shared by the general public, and a strong opinion about something
3. your business website should have its own group that you can expose through your friendship network on Facebook

You must consider the huge power that Facebook has wrt the speed it can distribute your brand and the powerful value friends telling friends have in terms of marketing. The secret with Facebook is to ask people constantly to tell others about you, if you do not ask, it will not happen.

twitter...why would i want to register with twitter...

I wouldn't spent much time on Twitter unless I have some form of following, however Twitter is a very powerful broadcast method that can instantly give exposure to your followers on several social networks by simply tweeting, utilizing software that automatically publish your twitter posts on sites like Facebook.

is there a way of linking one thread to various threads so you dont have to type out the same info an different websites...

I do not recommend this simply because duplicate content is never a good idea, but it is possible to do this by sharing the database. Rather make use of WP Press This feature, that way you can at least have the ability to modify the content a bit in order to make it a bit more unique. There is also another tool I am utilizing to autopublish RSS feeds on some of my sites using Drupal. But I seriously do not recommend the use of it alone.

[Chatmaster]

a good example is all the links at he bottom of the page...digg...facebook...etc etc

which ones do you sign up with and why?

The which one is actually imo of little importance, you MUST have it end of story. These are broadcast methods whereby visitors can virally broadcast your site to their various networks by simply clicking on their chosen networks.

is it much like going to the pub but on the internet...instead of actually going to the pub you sit in the comfort of your office or lounge and type instead of talking...find which crowd you enjoy and get active...if you dont like the content you just move to another...and try it out...am i on the righ track...if not please help me and point me in the right direction...

Perfect way of seeing it. The only thing I would like to add is that you are dealing with a platform where the average person is of high intelligence, content that can be publicly scrutinized for ever so think carefully when you do publish something, BS has a way of totally messing up your reputation online.

[Chatmaster]

things like becoming friends on the forums...why do people do that i thought sharing info on the site was being friends...

This is important imo. Being on a forum chatting away with a forum alias and some interesting avatar is impersonal and safe, but knowing someone now has a friend status makes it a bit more difficult psychologically to ignore someone. Having friends officially is beneficial also from a reputation point of view. People measure you by the company you keep... need I say more?

i have a notification at the top of the page which has been there for months...to join an interest group why would i do that...isnt this froum and interest group?

That contributes to your identity online, tells people who you are and what interest you share. How can I start a discussion with you if I do not know you, networking is the power of the internet and in business we all know that it is key.


I hope these opinionated answers helped you, but I would like to support Ian's statement about Rudi @ Softdux, I host a couple of sites with him and he is truly an ISP worth supporting!

Murdock also read the Private Message I sent you.

[murdock]

thanks...here i thought it was gona take weeks to get to the bottom of this and chatmaster does it in 3 threads...thanks again.

it seems i have gona have to get with the program loose the alias...i am registered on this website and have been for a while and been posting using my real identity...maybe its time to pack up murdock and move on...over 1000 posted...dave do we get a gold star

[AndyD]

...over 1000 posted...dave do we get a gold star

I heard a rumour that Dave mails you a cash cheque on your 1000th post.

[murdock]

emails or mails it...it must have got lost or stolen...both are high unlikely...as the south african postal service is rated in the top ten in the world...i didnt say for what...